


Azure Falco

by QueerLeFay



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Canon Era, Fairy Tale Elements, M/M, Magic Revealed, implied established relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-21
Updated: 2016-05-21
Packaged: 2018-06-09 20:01:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,027
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6921019
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/QueerLeFay/pseuds/QueerLeFay
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A story about trust and foresight.<br/>Of two lovers and a star.<br/>Of Swallows who named the world.<br/>And of a Prince and his storyteller.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Azure Falco

Merlin lied awake on his tiny bed, eyes tracking the dust swirling around his ceiling. The morning had yet to break and the birds had yet to sing, and yet, the heavy feeling of unease has already clouded his head.

He had to tell Arthur now.

Merlin sighed and closed his eyes. It would be too late if he postponed it any longer. Something was going to happen. He could feel it in his bones, in every breath he took.

He stood up from his bed when the first ray of sunlight filtered through his window, steeling his resolve.

-00-

Arthur was already awake when he knocked. He was awake and staring pensively out the window. The air around them turned heavy, as if Arthur had been waiting for Merlin. For all he knew, Arthur might have been waiting for a long time.

“Arthur…” Merlin approached him carefully, fists balled up beside his body, “I have something to tell you.”

Arthur’s shoulders tensed under his words, his head hung low, as if he was hiding from the words, “can’t this wait? The day has just break.”

“No. I can’t…this can’t wait any longer,” Merlin said, he could not look Arthur in the eyes, not that Arthur wasn’t also avoiding his eyes.

“What if I tell you that I already knew? Would that stop this conversation from happening?”

Merlin felt his chest constrict, for a second, he could not breathe. 

“No, it would not. I have to say it. You have to…know…that I trust you with everything, even my life and those I care about.” Merlin whispered into the quiet room, heart thudding like it was racing to a stop.

Arthur looked up to him then, eyes weary and tired, but there was also a hint of a smile curling around the edges of his lips.

“Merlin, I know you do. I don’t know why you choose now to tell me all about it.”

“Because something is going to happen. I don’t know what, I don’t know when, I don’t know how; I don’t know if I am just being paranoid. But something is going to happen and if…if I am not to survive this, then I want you to know that I do trust you.”

Arthur looked scared for a split second, and then he heaved a heavy breath and motioned him to come closer, “right then. If you must, say what you need to say.”

“Arthur,” Merlin said, looking at him straight in the eyes.

“I have magic.”

Arthur’s breath came out in a whoosh.

-00-

_Merlin had a lot of stories stored up in his head._

_His first story was from his mother, who created worlds with her words. She would tell him tales with her rhythmic voice and he would paint the scenery in the air above them with thousands of twinkling lights. That was the first memory he had._

_Then Will came along and with him, a thousand more stories made their way into his memory. The stories were different from his mum’s, but enchanting all the same._

_With time, he developed his own stories, and he told them to Arthur when they were both in the prince’s chamber, sitting closely with their own chores on hand._

_“Have I told you a story about Sara?” Merlin asked one afternoon not too long ago, voice faraway, as it always was when he narrated his stories._

_Arthur hummed, sitting back on his seat where he worked on the patrol report for his father. He flicked his eyes to Merlin, bathed in the red glow of the setting sun._

_“Sara was a beautiful woman with the sweetest smile, and she lived in a tiny village behind the mountain ranges,” Merlin started, the rhythm of his voice synchronized with the sharp noise where he sharpened Arthur’s sword._

_Arthur closed his eyes contentedly for a moment._

-00-

Merlin stood in front of Arthur, who had turned his head to the other way. His body was shaking and he clenched his fists even tighter, biting his lower lips in an attempt to stop the shaking.

Arthur looked back at him after a long, silent moment and he moved closer to where Merlin stood.

“Shh…” he whispered soothingly, taking Merlin’s balled fist and forced them open. He clucked when he saw the blood where Merlin broke his skin with his fingernails. Arthur ran his hand through Merlin’s hair, and wiped away the tears Merlin did not know was there with the pad of his thumb.

“Shh…” he repeated, drawing Merlin close and let him cried into his shoulder.

“I am sorry, Arthur, I am sorry, I’m…”

-00-

The rumours of a witch hiding in the woods have been brewing for some times. The King was restless with anger and indignation; he could not have any person with magic so close to his castle; and so he summoned Arthur and ordered him to find and kill the witch.

Merlin ran after Arthur, not heeding his command to stay back in the castle.

“I can help you, Arthur!” he demanded, “you know I could!”

Arthur sighed, running his hand through his hair, tugging at it, “I know you could, Merlin. I have no doubt about it. But I can’t…” he stopped, peering at Merlin cautiously, “I can’t risk you being found out.”

“I’d rather be found out that finding you cursed again. Or worse, dead.” Merlin deadpanned, gripping the rein of Arthur’s horse tightly, causing the mane to snort softly.

The silence that followed was heavy, neither one wanted to relent. Both wanted to protect.

“Fine,” Arthur finally said, “but don’t do anything unless absolutely necessary.”

Merlin grinned at him brightly, releasing the rein and turned to his own horse.

-00-

Merlin felt too hot. Maybe, he thought, curling into himself in pain, this is what it’d feel like when the King would inevitably burn him at the stake.

He writhed silently, his bones were moving and his skin was stretched to their limit. He couldn’t open his eyes, he couldn’t breathe. Dimly, he thought he could hear a grunt and a body falling to the ground, and he could hear Arthur calling at him. But the world turned dark quickly and he eagerly reached for the coolness of nothing.

-00-

Gaius looked up from his hands, “what happened?” he asked weakly.

“We went for the witch,” Arthur choked, rubbing his hand on his face, “and she was waiting for us in the clearing near the creek. She knew we were coming and she knew that Merlin…that Merlin was magic.”

Gaius seemed like he wanted to be surprised but did not have the energy to do so. Suddenly, he looked ten years older.

“And then?”

“Then she laughed about the irony of it and she asked Merlin if he really wanted to have anything to do with…me,” Arthur sounded hurt, but then he, unexpectedly, smiled, “and stupid, idiotic Merlin, he stood in front of me and told her to stick her offends up her bum.”

Gaius chuckled feebly along with Arthur.

“I told him to stop provoking her, and that we should just finish what we came for and leave before anything happen. And that was when she…she said the spell so fast. I couldn’t push him away in time,” Arthur twisted his fingers, “I managed to kill her after, but it was too late.”

Gaius nodded, patting Arthur on his shoulder as he always did when Arthur was little and needed fatherly comfort.

Gwen and Morgana arrived soon after, panting like they had just run all the way to the clearing. Together, they stared at the creature sleeping underneath the trees.

“Is that…?” Gwen gasped.

Morgana found her hand and gripped on tightly, “how?”

Arthur pointed at the body of the witch wordlessly. He couldn’t take his eyes of the…thing in front of them.

“What are you going to say to Uther?” Morgana asked again.

“The truth,” Arthur answered, gut clenching and hoping against hope that his father would let him help Merlin.

The creature stretched its dark blue body, the sharp ridges that were protruding from its spine rose along with it. It opened its yellow eyes lazily, before they closed again and the creature resumed its slumber.

-00-

“You want to do what?” the King bellowed, his voice ringing loudly in the empty room.

“I want to lift his curse,” Arthur repeated calmly, his back ramrod straight in the face of his father’s irritation.

“Your devotion to this boy is unseemly, Arthur. You must know a lost cause when you see one,” the King sighed into his hand, “what hold does this boy have on you?”

Arthur lifted his chin, “I must repay my debt, Father. He has saved me and so it is in my best interest to return the favor. What kind of figure would the people see if I so easily just kill the person who has saved my life numerous time over and just did so again?”

That is not the entire reason, but he could not tell his father the other reasons or he would be as good as sealed Merlin’s death sentence.

“How can you save him?”

-00-

The two Swallows that live at the edge of the town of Xiphone have no names, except ones they give for themselves. They look like no other creatures, for they have the face and the gait of those of men, but they were equipped with beautiful feathers and wings like those of birds. What they were, though, they were the most intelligent and wise of all creatures, possessing great magic like no other, blessed as they were by the Earth.

The first Swallow, who goes by the name of Eber, had a long face, which was framed with white beard. Eber was the wisest amongst the two, for he was the first to reach earth.

The second Swallow named himself Gog. He had round, sober face, for he was the one who foresight what might become.

They were the most dedicated of scholars, devoting their timeless existence to name all the faunas and floras that have yet to be named and to learn her as closely as one possibly could; learn every fold and ridges she had and to map her as detailed as only eternal creatures could.

“And I shall name it ‘Merlin’,” Eber said, stroking a bird’s head with his forefinger.

-00-

“And these magical birds,” the King said carefully from his throne, “they won’t give the boy any…unholy abilities?”

Gaius shook his head, “they will not do nor give anything other than a cure, my Lord,” he said.

“Very well,” the King sat back, “then we shall embark on the journey to save…Merlin…presently.”

“’We’, my Lord?” Arthur choked out.

“Yes, Arthur, ‘we’. I am coming along to this…mission…to save your manservant so as to nothing more than a cure would come by him.”

“But surely you could not abandon Camelot to her own devices?” Arthur pressed on, an uncomfortable feeling rising in his chest.

“And I shall not do so. I trust Lord Monmouth is more than capable to handle a few days’ worth of governing. Unless there is a pressing matter, I am sure that Camelot will not fall during her King’s absence,” Uther said dismissively, his eyes glinting dangerously, “unless there is something of this manservant of yours that I should know about?”

Arthur felt his heart stopped for a few frightening moment, but he held his composure smoothly, trained as he was in hiding his emotions, “No, your Majesty. Nothing of importance to disclose about Merlin.”

“Then there is nothing left to discuss. We will depart at first light tomorrow morning,” Uther said, clearly dismissing them.

Nothing left to say, and with nothing to dissuade his father without revealing anything, Arthur bowed and followed Gaius closely out the door.

-00-

The blue creature was awake, and was blinking dopily at the moon. Its movement was sluggish as though it had been drugged heavily, but that did not make it any less dangerous.

“Merlin?” Arthur had whispered, carefully stepping close to where it laid.

The creature turned its eyes to Arthur, no recognition passing through its yellow eyes, and Arthur swallowed down any disappointment he may have had.

“Merlin, please,” he said, a weak, pleading voice, even to his ears.

The creature blinked before it stood on its legs, rising to its true height and made to attack him. But Arthur was prepared and it was so slow. With a heavy heart, Arthur shot a well-aimed crossbow to the side of its leg, grazing it so that the creature slumped back to the earth.

Under the pale moonlight, Arthur tied the creature with carefully calculated knots so as to secure it for the journey tomorrow.

The creature moaned pitifully, trying to move its unmovable limbs.

“I am sorry, I had to. We shall turn you back soon,” Arthur came close to its head daringly, putting so much trust in his own work. “You will be back again with us soon.” He said again, gingerly laying his hand on the creature’s head, softly stroking its thick, rough skin before leaving the clearing briskly. 

Arthur turned back without noticing the set of yellow eyes now calmly following him, and he did not hear the quiet whimper coming from the creature.

-00-

_Arthur was almost finished with the report when the sun had lost its urgent red colour, and had turned dark instead. But Merlin, now working on shining his boots, was still talking._

_“So there went Sara to the treacherous mountain ranges, climbing the brittle boulders which are only too ready to throw her down the rocky rivers below should it wish to. But Sara preserved, and she raced to the top before the moon hung high in the cloudless sky, for she was thinking of her Love and how close she was into proving it.”_

_The push and pull of Merlin’s voice was calming and Arthur found himself staring not at the work he was so close to finishing, but at the shadows playing across Merlin’s face._

_Arthur held himself back at the sudden urge to reach across the room and trace the shadows with his fingertips._

-00-

Arthur rose from his uneasy slumber long before dawn break. The sky was still dark, and he longed to run to the clearing, just to see if the beast – no, _Merlin_ – was still okay. Was still alive.

He started when he heard a sharp knock on his door and, without his assent, the door opened to reveal Morgana standing on the other side of the door with her riding tunic and trousers.

“Let me help you dress,” she said, crossing the room quickly.

“I don’t want you to come,” Arthur said, refusing her help to dress him with a quick wave of hand.

“And I want to come. Merlin has saved me too,” she said, not elaborating and Arthur didn’t ask.

“He is not himself right now, Morgana. He is dangerous,” his voice hitched.

“I know he is. I have seen him after all,” she tried to lighten the air around them and succeeded when she heard Arthur’s involuntary huff of breath. The closest to a smile or a laugh she could possibly get out of him.

“Gwen is coming too, I suppose?” he asked with mock resignation.

“Of course she is,” Morgana answered brightly, picking on the breakfast a servant had brought in not a moment ago.

Arthur looked over to his window, gazing down at the courtyard, where he usually saw Merlin walking seemingly without purpose up the stairs. He thought he could almost see him, ambling down the square and chattering with Gwaine. He resolutely ignored the sudden empty feeling in his stomach.

“Arthur, hey,” Morgana called softly, as though she could hear his thoughts, “we will get him back, don’t worry.”

-00-

There were ten horses including his, Arthur silently count, focusing on the sound of the horses’ hooves. 10 riders, too, his father, himself, Morgana, Gwen, Lancelot, Leon, and four of his father’s guards. Percival and Gwaine were walking behind the crea– _Merlin_ , and three of his other knights walked in front of Merlin, holding his ropes and pulling him along.

It all seemed save enough, his knots held true and he trusted Gwaine and Percival to be able to take care of things without hurting Merlin too much should the ropes decided to snap. He should not worry; Lancelot and Leon were also there, flanking Merlin on their horses. Everyone would be fine. _Merlin_ would be fine.

And yet, he could not help but kept looking back, quickly taking account of Merlin and everyone else every few minutes. Morgana had caught him at it, shaking her head minutely with a small smile curling on the edge of her lips. Gwaine had caught his eyes so many times, too, and he had rolled his eyes at him, mouthing, ‘we got this, Princess,’ every so often.

That did not lessen his worries.

-00-

“The King is coming,” Gog said, watching the telltale golden light blooming across the bird’s heart as it accepted its name.

Eber released the bird so that it can spread the name to its kin, nodding gravely.

“Not to wage a war against us, I hope,” he said softly, without too much worry.

“No. He is here to ask for a cure,” Gog opened the window of their hut.

“A cure? A magical cure?” Eber almost laughed at the irony of it; a King who pursued a war against magic asking for magic to heal.

“Peace, Brother,” Gog said, “he is only here because of Prince Arthur.”

Eber settled again, “well, then, we shall start preparing for their arrival.”

-00-

The centre of Xiphone was located in the inner wall built to give the rich little town protection against raiders. The huge arch at the southwest end of the massive, round brick walls was one of the two exits leading to the outer wall where the guards’ houses and stations were.

Arthur was standing in the middle of the square, a spacious space used for the town’s events, looking at that particular arch with no reasons at all other than that was where Merlin raged, chained to the sturdy railings. The people, who had graciously welcomed the King and his troop despite their initial surprise, were building a pyre as instructed by the two Swallows who had been waiting for their arrival outside of the outer wall.

“We have been waiting,” the one with the long face had said, eliciting a twitch at the corner of the King’s eye.

He then proceeded to introduce himself as Eber and his brother as Gog. He took one look at Merlin and nodded somberly, “it is not going to be easy,” he said, “The man has started to fade.”

-00-

_“Why didn’t he just run away from his awful sisters, then?” Arthur had asked, voice muffled from where he laid his head in his folded arms, “I mean, why should Sara be the one that does all that?”_

_Merlin tsked with an amused smile, he put down Arthur’s boots, “see, he had his duties, as you might know. His parents trusted him to take care of them. He could not just abandon his sisters, no matter how horrible they might be.”_

_Merlin stood up from his seat next to the fireplace and moved around to light the candles now that it turned dark. Arthur watched him puttering around his room and he thought, ‘what the hell,’ so he stood up and moved closer to Merlin._

_“Hey,” Merlin turned around when he felt Arthur’s arms wrapped loosely around his waist._

_“Hi,” Arthur answered with a smile, placing a soft kiss at the corner of Merlin’s lips and moved away again, “so what happened next?” he asked loftily as he sat heavily down in his favourite chair in front of the hearth._

_Merlin huffed fondly, sitting down in front of Arthur, laying his head on his knees, “well, then Sara sat on a boulder at the top of the mountain and…"_

_-00-_

Merlin was tied to a pyre and something painful was throbbing in Arthur’s chest.

Granted, Merlin was not _Merlin_ then. He was a huge beast with spines so sharp they could tear the human flesh apart like a hot knife through butter. But still, he had had nightmares about Merlin and pyres and even if the circumstances were different, it still made him feel frightened in ways only imminent death could make him feel.

“Do you understand the conditions?” the King’s voice shook Arthur out of his silent breakdown. The King was standing threateningly close to Eber and Gog, where they were coating an ancient looking dagger with thick poultices.

“Yes, your Majesty,” answer Eber calmly, “we could not alter the boy in anyway or to turn him into a pawn in our, as you put it, _plot against the crown_.”

Arthur had a feeling that the King was being mocked, but he kept his lips tight against the hysterical laughter he felt bubbling up in his throat.

“Good,” the King said snappily, moving away a safe distance from the pyre.

“Would he be alright?” Arthur asked once the King was out of the hearing range.

Eber turned to him with a surprisingly gentle expression, “we are going to try our best to return him to himself and to you, your Majesty.” He said, as if he was talking about something other than getting the prince his manservant back.

“I…” Arthur cleared his throat, “thank you.”

-00-

_“Her Lover tried looking for her,” Merlin continued, “but the plague found him first. He could not move from his bed, weak as he was. Sara came back to him in his dying moments, demanding her prove back as it was the only cure for his Lover. The awful sisters, however, denied ever receive such a thing and said that their brother was a lost cause.”_

_Arthur didn’t stop his fingers from stroking Merlin’s wild hair, his other hand resting on Merlin’s shoulder. The fire crackled merrily, and the warmth seep into his chest. He was not entirely convinced that the warmth was solely due to the fire and not from the man in front of him._

_“That is horrible,” Arthur mumbled._

_Merlin flashed him a smile, turning his head and kissed the inside of Arthur’s knee, “horrible indeed.”_

_“What next?” Arthur asked impatiently, curiosity burning._

_“But Sara had a star-“_

_A loud knock stopped Merlin from continuing and Arthur groaned when the guard said, “The King has summoned Prince Arthur.”_

_-00-_

Everything turned quiet.

The people had vacated the square, hiding behind their stalls and their homes. The King retreated to one of the elevated seats along with Morgana and Gwen, his guards around them.

Arthur stood right in front of Merlin, but not too close. The Swallows had chased him away from standing too close. Gwaine and Percival were standing in front of one arch and Leon and Lancelot at the other, guarding the exits should Merlin succeeded in fleeing the pyre.

Gog made some last-minute preparation on the dagger before passing it to Eber who moved deceptively casual towards the monster raging in front of him.

The creature roared deep and loud. It was no longer weakened by the effects of its transformation. It struggled in its hold, the woods cracking ominously. Arthur felt his heart race. He trusted Merlin to never harm him, but that thing was no longer Merlin. Eber had said that Merlin was fading away. Arthur felt his heart raced faster for a completely different reason.

Eber made a move forward, and in a movement so unexpectedly quick, he thrust his dagger into the side of the creature, the poultice smeared around the bleeding wound and the creature bellowed in agony. Arthur wanted to yell; somehow still aware that it was Merlin they were stabbing away.

“It’s the only way we can get the poultice inside,” Gog said in a low voice, as if sensing his thought. Or, he could also have just read Arthur’s expression.

Arthur was about to answer when he was distracted by the loud sound of woods snapping, and suddenly the creature was free.

The ropes were dangling uselessly around the creature’s arms and he watched as Eber dodged the claws that almost grazed his belly. Eber clutched at his dagger, moving and sidestepping the clumsy attacks and ended up forced to run for his life towards the arch. Leon and Lancelot, guarding the southwest arch, had to jump away from both Eber and the creature less they got trampled by it.

Eber lead the creature through the outer wall, where more soldiers standing guard was forced to jump out of the way.

“Merlin!” Eber shouted when they reached the entrance to the outer wall.

The monster roared, gaining in on the Swallow.

“Merlin!” Eber said again, firmly, “do you not remember yourself? A man like a falcon, so strong-willed. And possessing magic so great no Swallows can compete. Have you lost yourself?”

The creature stopped just before Eber. It whined pitifully from deep within its throat.

“A faithful protector of the once and future king, and,” he chuckled, “his storyteller, too.”

The creature cocked its head, and a strange, rumbling sound coming from it said, “Sara had a star…”

Eber stared mutely. He had no idea what this was about, but the creature repeated the same sentence over and over again.

Arthur came around the corner at that moment, hearing the creature said, “Sara had a star” with a confused expression if such creature could do so.

“Yes, Merlin,” Arthur found his voice, rounding the creature, “Sara had a star. She was sent away to search for prove of her love to her Lover’s sisters, you remember? She had to climb to the mountaintop and wait for the stars to fall. But she lost her star when the awful sisters took it from her and when her Love fell deathly ill, the sisters refused to acknowledge that Sara had given them a star. But Sara had a star.”

Arthur approached the beast, laying the palm of his hand on its snout, “Come on, Merlin. You have to finish the story.”

The creature quieted down and with a pitiful moan, it fell to the ground.

“He is fighting the beast,” Eber said, staring down at the creature writhing on the ground, “he is trying to fight it for his mind and his physical body.”

Arthur watched quietly, trying to stop the trembling of his hands. After a few long moments, the creature shifted slowly back to Merlin and Arthur almost sobbed with relief.

“Merlin?” he crouched down, reaching towards him.

Merlin opened his eyes abruptly, and Arthur gasped, as instead of the shade of blue he had come to be familiar with, Merlin’s eyes were the colour of a brilliant gold. His mouth was open, but no sound came. His back arched off the ground and wisps of golden mist leaked from his fingertips, going up to the sky and exploded into fireworks.

Arthur cursed loudly; “If the King sees him like this…” he gulped down the rest of his thought.

“It’s alright, my Lord,” Eber said, not taking his eyes off Merlin, “he could not possibly know the effect of the cure, could he?”

“No, he could not.” Arthur agreed.

The bursts of colours faded away into nothingness, and Merlin’s eyes flickered back to blue. Arthur caught him as he slumped back, confused, dazed, and weak.

“What happened?” he croaked.

-00-

“Whatever are we going to use these gold for, anyway?” Gog asked, throwing the load onto the desk in their hut.

“Travelling, of course,” Eber smiled, “we still have so many grounds to cover to have a complete map of the world.”

“A little ambitious, isn’t it?” Gog asked again.

The King had graciously gifted them with two bags of gold for their trouble, along with a terse nod and a brusque, “thank you.” Then he had led the troop away as soon as the sun rose.

“It’s fortunate that we are not affected by time, isn’t it?” Eber smiled.

-00-

“How is he?” Gwaine sat down heavily on the log.

“I don’t know,” Arthur answered, looking down to a sleeping Merlin. He gazed warily to the King’s tent, hand itching to touch Merlin, to make sure that he was really there.

“The King has retired for the night,” Gwaine said, noticing his gaze and his aborted hand motion. “That show of light…it was Merlin, wasn’t it?”

Arthur looked sharply at Gwaine.

“Lancelot tried to convince everyone that it was just the effect of the poultice, you see. The King believed him; maybe he just wanted to believe it. But to me, it was just suspicious. No one asked him, but he got all flustered about it.”

And that was Gwaine all over, wasn’t it? A smart man hiding behind a charade of a fool.

“I do not know what you’re talking about,” Arthur exhaled after a long silence.

Gwaine laughed self-deprecatingly, “You know. You know and Lancelot knows. I thought I was his friend,” he exhaled a long, raged breath, “I understand his fears of course, but I thought…”

“You have to speak to him, Gwaine,” Arthur said, giving into temptation and run his hand through Merlin’s hair. Merlin snuffled once and pressed closer to Arthur’s hand unconsciously. “This is not…I can not say anything that is Merlin’s to keep.”

Gwaine nodded, a flicker of respect in his eyes, “you are completely right.” He stood up and stretched.

“I will take first watch,” he announced and walked away.

-00-

Merlin slept through the whole journey back to Camelot and well into the next day. The King has decided that he would very much like to forget anything ever happened and that he did not just embark on a journey to save Arthur’s manservant. It suited Arthur just fine.

Gaius came and went, declaring that Merlin was just exhausted and nodded bemusedly when Arthur told him that he wanted Merlin to rest in his chambers.

“Arthur,” Morgana opened the door quietly and slipped through the crack, “I think it is time for us to talk.”

Arthur felt weary from that sentence, “is it really necessary?”

Morgana nodded, uncharacteristically nervous, “it is for me.”

Arthur glanced briefly to Merlin’s sleeping figure and closed the curtains around the bed before gesturing to Morgana to take a seat.

“Does this have anything to do with Merlin saving you?” Arthur asked.

“Yes. Arthur, you remember my sleeping problem and nightmares don’t you?”

Arthur nodded, silently urging Morgana to continue.

“I am a Seer, Arthur. I can see what may become,” she said quickly, as if afraid she’d lose her confidence. The silence stretched as Arthur processed the information.

“Couldn’t you have seen what the witch did to Merlin before it happened?” Arthur smiled tiredly; playful tone wasn’t lost on Morgana, and with it, the heavy air dissipated.

“I am untrained, Arthur. I can’t see everything,” Morgana huffed, but she turned serious again, “Merlin must have told you about his…talents, then?”

“He did. He told me that he wanted me to know that he trusted me should he not survive something,” Arthur thought about how eerie the timing was.

Morgana nodded, “I overheard Gaius saying something about him being a really powerful warlock. I wouldn’t be surprised if even if he is not a seer, he could still sense something that may become.”

Arthur looked over to the bed again and said absently, “The Swallow said the same thing, too. Eber said that Merlin possesses magic even greater than those of any Swallows’”

“Then I fear for him,” Morgana said, standing up, “for Swallow’s magic made them unaffected by time.”

-00-

“What have I done?”

Merlin’s hoarse voice snapped Arthur out of the mind-numbing reports he had to do. Arthur stood up from his desk and walked briskly towards the bed.

“You have finally learned that every mess that happened was of your doing, then?” he smirked at Merlin’s scowl, and ran his fingers through Merlin’s soft hair, “how are you?”

“Disoriented,” Merlin answered honestly, catching Arthur’s hand and placed a quick kiss on his palm, “I didn’t hurt you or anyone else, did I?”

“What do you remember, Merlin?”

“I remembered feeling so hot, like I was burning from the inside. And I remember something else pushing me back from myself, something else taking over whatever I have become,” Merlin shuddered, clutching at Arthur’s hand.

The bed dipped as Arthur sat down, his other hand resting on the other side of Merlin’s hips.

“You did not hurt anyone at all,” Arthur said and then fell quiet.

“I told you not to come with me, Merlin,” Arthur said again, voice tight, “I told you not to do or say anything stupid. Why don’t you ever _listen_ to me?”

Arthur did not notice his trembling hands, he did not notice the way his body shook or the way his eyes were desperately mapping the plane of Merlin’s face.

“The King almost didn’t let me help you. The Swallow said that you almost disappear. I almost lost you, Merlin.”

Merlin pulled Arthur close, hand running across his back. Arthur shuddered and heaved a heavy breath, dislodging his head from the crook of Merlin’s neck.

“Don’t be stupid, Merlin. Don’t just…run headlong into the problem and leave me behind. You can’t always, by some miracle, survive. You can’t just gamble your life away all the time. It isn’t fair for you, it isn’t fair for your mother or Gaius or your friends. It is not fair for _me_.” Arthur’s voice was brittle, and his grip on Merlin was like a bind.

“I’m sorry.” Merlin said, pressing a soft kiss to Arthur’s chapped lips, “I am sorry. I can’t usually think straight when it is your safety on the line.”

Arthur gave him a biting kiss, soothing the sore spots with his tongue. The kiss tasted salty, and Arthur didn’t even want to acknowledge that it was his tears that made it so.

-00-

“Would you tell me the ending of the story?” Arthur asked once they had calmed down and Merlin was lying on the crook of Arthur’s arm, head pillowed on his chest.

“The story?” Merlin asked distractedly, running his fingers across Arthur’s middle.

“About Sara? After the sisters refused to acknowledge the existence of the star that was the only cure for her Love?”

“Ah,” Merlin said, “yes. Sara did have a star and even though her Love’s sisters took it away from her, it was still Sara’s since she never meant to give it to the sisters. Sara desperately called for it, for her Love was fading away right in front of her. And the star, hearing her calls, shone through the chest it was hidden at and burst through the wood. The sisters shrieked and the sisters tried holding the star back from reaching Sara and her Love, but stars burn, you see, and it burned her Love’s sisters away.”

Merlin turned to lie on his stomach, eyes seeking Arthur’s soft ones.

“Sara’s star burned for her Love and it gave him its essence, and it cured him,” he said as he placed a soft kiss on Arthur’s lips.

“Do they live happily ever after then?”

Merlin shrugged, a strange, sad smile flashed through his face, but it’s gone before Arthur could properly see it. “Stars live for a long time. Sara and her Love may live together in happiness for the length of her life.”

Arthur hummed uncomprehendingly. Merlin traced his fingers on Arthur’s nose, a strange longing in his eyes. He was quiet for sometime before he buried his face in Arthur’s neck, his voice wavered as he said,

“But stars will live for far longer after humans die, seemingly immortal compared to human’s years. And Sara’s love, he had a star in him.”

**Author's Note:**

> You might have noticed some loose ends I can't tie up in the story, so sorry for that. I might or might not going to write short stories for the ones I am most invested in, but it is not guaranteed. But yeah, regardless of the loose ends and the implied things I might have incorporated into the story, I hope you enjoy it. Let me know your thoughts!


End file.
